Management for West 49 said a tough retail environment, a calendar shift, and weak outerwear sales due to unseasonably warm weather sunk sales 4.9% to CN$61.6 million ($58.5 mm) for the fourth quarter ended January 30 from CN$64.8 million ($52.8 mm) in the prior-year period. Comp store sales for the Canadian action sports retailer slipped 2.3% in Q4. Comps for the core West 49 banner were down 1.1%
Gross margin, impacted by lower product margins, slipped 80 basis points to 24.4% for the quarter. Net income for the quarter was CN$873,000 ($830k), or 1 Canadian cent per share, compared with a loss of C$8.5 million ($6.91 mm), or 13 Canadian cents per share, in the year-ago period.
Excluding items, net income in the prior-year period was CN$1.1 million ($900k), or 2 Canadian cents per share.
Results for the comparable period in the prior year were impacted by a goodwill and intangible assets impairment of CN$12.0 million ($11.4 million) (pre-tax) and store restructuring costs of CN$0.9 million ($830,000) (pre-tax).
West 49 added that the Off The Wall banner continued to perform below expectations throughout fiscal 2010.
